Sports History

On the eve on the fourth and final (?) game of the 2002 NBA finals, Bill Plaschke, the talented sports writer of the Los Angeles Times wrote, “So tonight the suspense begins, tick by tick, dribble by dribble, a town and its team counting down the most anticipated sight in the Los Angeles sports landscape. The Fourth game of the NBA Finals could produce it. Emotion will rule it. History will judge it. Millions might never forget it” (Los Angeles Times, June 12, 2002, p. D-1).

Well written. Eloquently said. I wish I could write like that, but give me a break.

Before I give you a piece of my mind, a confession or two is in order. 1) Through out my life I have been a baseball fan of sorts (Dodgers), an on again, off again football fan (Dallas Cowboys), but I have never been much of basketball fan. 2) In the last two years, I have gotten interested enough in the Lakers to at least keep up with the finals. 3) Although I have not seen much, I have probably watched more basketball in the last thirty days, than in all the rest of my life put together. 4) I want Shaq to win tonight.

Now, with that off my chest, back to the break (pardon the pun). Obviously, emotion will rule the post game celebration. Surely, for millions, tonight will be a memorable moment. No doubt, the 2001-2002 Lakers will get in the record books.

But in the overall scheme of things is this all that significant? Granted, it is of momentary importance to the Lakers, their fans, and many other who will profit financially from what happens, but if the Lord tarries, will this game make it to the history books? In all the years that the Roman Coliseum stood, can anyone name a single gladiator who fought in the Coliseum? Did any gladiator ever win a victory that affected the world?

A few years before the Coliseum was built, Paul was imprisoned in Rome. During that imprisonment, he wrote four letters: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. From prison Paul wrote four letters that have affected millions of people for almost two thousand years, not to mention eternity. As he himself wrote, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things, which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:16-18).

So, if you are a sport fan (or whatever your thing is), enjoy. Just remember, all of this the temporary. Don’t forget the eternal.